Monday, March 16, 2015

MET Cover Tenor Taylor Stayton Takes Center Stage At PBO

Tenor of the High Seas: Taylor Stayton shows off his top C's in Florida

"Life is good for tenor Taylor Stayton. Wearing baggy shorts, t-shirt and a boyish smile, he was celebrating his 30th birthday last Friday when he arrived for an interview at Palm Beach Opera’s production center in West Palm Beach. On Friday and Sunday, he will make his role debut as Tonio in the company’s production of Gaetano Donizetti’s comic opera The Daughter of the Regiment....Not many tenors are up to portraying Tonio. That’s because of the nine high Cs in his first act aria 'Ah, mes amis…Pour mon ame.' It’s the aria that rocketed Luciano Pavarotti to stardom when he sang it in 1972 at the Metropolitan Opera. 'The thing is, it’s like a secret among us tenors,' he said. 'If you have a high C, it’s not that difficult'....But it wasn’t just his facility with high Cs that persuaded Palm Beach Opera to cast him. Beauty of voice, tone and line are paramount in bel canto opera. 'His voice has such a lyric quality that the parts that aren’t high Cs are also beautifully sung,' said Scott Guzielek, director of artistic operations. As a teenager, Stayton sang, played guitar and performed in school musicals and choirs. He grew up listening to bands such as Aerosmith, The Beatles, Steely Dan and The Band and still loves classic rock. He was steered into opera at Ohio State University. In addition to performing with smaller companies, he’s covered several roles at the Met. One memorable night in 2011 he wound up on stage as Percy in Anna Bolena alongside soprano Anna Netrebko, when Stephen Costello fell ill in the middle of the show. 'Within five minutes, they threw me into costumes and makeup,' he said. 'It was better that way. If he’d canceled two days before I would have had to sit for two days and gotten my nerve up.' In April, he will return to the Met to cover Costello in The Merry Widow. At this stage of his career he prefers comic roles. 'That’s my personality,' he said." [Source] Click here for more information about the Palm Beach Opera production of Donizetti's The Daughter of the Regiment by clicking here.